Former Greencastle man accused of murdering brother

Tuesday, May 6, 2014
Vernon Saunders

VERSAILLES, Ky. -- A former Putnam County man is facing murder and other charges after police say his brother's body was found alongside a highway Sunday morning after having been dragged by a car for more than a mile.

Vernon Saunders, 56, of Versailles, is charged with murder, tampering with physical evidence and abuse of a corpse in the death of his brother, 51-year-old Timothy Saunders.

Vernon Saunders is the former owner of The Third Degree bar in Greencastle, as well as a frame shop o the city's South Side. He graduated from Greencastle High School in the late 1970s.

Timothy Saunders graduated from GHS several years later in 1981. He was also a 1985 DePauw University graduate.

Versailles police Lt. Daniel Clark said Timothy Saunders' body was found along Kentucky 33 in Woodford County on Sunday morning by a passing motorist.

Clark said evidence took officers to the nearby home of Vernon Saunders.

"We made a determination based on evidence found outside the residence that the residence could very well be connected to the body that was found. We had reason to believe that there was someone inside," Clark said.

Saunders was arrested after a three-hour standoff with officers.

Police closed a section of the highway for almost 15 hours to investigate.

Authorities were initially unsure whether Timothy Saunders was dead before he was dragged. However, a Monday autopsy confirmed that the younger Saunders was shot several times and was already dead before the dragging occurred.

The passing motorist discovered the body at about 6:30 a.m. Sunday. Investigators believe Timothy Saunders died between 4 and 6 a.m.

In court on Monday, Vernon Saunders entered a not guilty plea. He admitted to officers to shooting an "intruder."

Court documents indicate he then tied the man to his truck and dragged him down the road and subsequently "came home and cleaned a mess."

The coroner in Woodford County said Timothy Saunders was visiting from Florida, something he typically does during horse racing season.

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  • Really? You shot an "intruder" and dragged him behind your vehicle never noticing it was your brother?

    While that logic might work in Kentucky, it won't work here.

    Let me be the first to thank you for leaving the State of Indiana.

    -- Posted by Emmes on Tue, May 6, 2014, at 11:29 AM
  • I used to know Vernon back in the early 1970's.

    -- Posted by donantonioelsabio on Tue, May 6, 2014, at 7:22 PM
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